Ethics

Many ads seem to tell individuals that if they will only buy product X, they will acquire friendship, self-esteem, sex appeal, power, health, etc.  Collectively these ads tell individuals that they will be able to satisfy some of their most important desires through the purchase and use of consumer products.  First, does this characterization of ads seem correct to you?  Why, or why not? Illustrate your position with examples from ads. 

Many of these ads seem to be offensive, especially to young women, here as an example, the advertising of cosmetics, let’s assume anti-wrinkle cream. These ads are targeted to a specific audience, it's about a woman, after seeing such ads, women start feeling bad about themselves, and their self-esteem decreases. Furthermore, most of these women undergo many painful treatment such as plastic surgeries or Botox. Why? To be physically attractive, but also just to look younger. Another example, is advertising of weight-loss products, pills, such as forcing people undergo extreme diets. But really, the promises offered by the ads are deceptive and drive the capitalist system, used mostly by large corporations; pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries that stay in business thanks to manipulating the audiences’ perception, and instigating deceptive message.

Advertising is intended to produce and attract the interest and certain reaction. This means that advertising has two main objectives: to inform and persuade; and even though these are separate and very often occur at the same time. With regard to anti-wrinkle cream, the advertising attempts to persuade young women to act in a certain way, for example, to acquire specific products, in a way that women do not seem to fully understand that they are subject to its influence.

The article Ethical Issues When Marketing To Children states “In the year 2007, it was found that about fifty eight percent of all the items purchased by children are sweets and toys”. These advertisements aimed...